


Coffee, Love, Insanity

by SummerStormFlower



Category: Original Work
Genre: Adoptive family, Best Friends, Breaking Up & Making Up, Coffee Shops, Dates, F/M, Falling In Love, Female Friendship, Flirting, Fluff, Forgiveness, Grief/Mourning, Hospitals, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Love, Marriage, Marriage Proposal, Minimum Wage, Original Characters - Freeform, Parent Death, Past Abuse, Premarital Sex, Romance, Unplanned Pregnancy, crappy apartments, low income, renting, women who can't cook
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:01:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25117309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SummerStormFlower/pseuds/SummerStormFlower
Summary: 3 young ladies work in a coffee shop. Mindy hasn't had it easy. Sarah hides her real feelings behind sarcasm. Holly has to face an unexpected pregnancy. Through trial and error, they each find love in the strangest places. For Mindy, it's a handsome figure skater. For Sarah, it's a man, wrecked with grief over his father's recent death. For Holly, it's her boyfriend, who's trying to be a better man for her and their baby.
Comments: 28
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hope that's an okay summary. And hope you like this :)

Mindy, Chapter 1

There’s a man who comes into the coffee shop everyday, sits at the same table, and reads a book. Mindy doesn’t know his name, yet she knows he likes his coffee black with milk and a smidgen of cream. She knows what time he shows up at and what time he leaves.  
Mindy always makes up an excuse to walk by his table. There’s a couple sitting near him who’re waiting for their coffee. It’s too cold and the window is right beside him. Or there’s a dirty table in need of wiping, which just happens to be across from him.  
She’s drawn to him, although she doesn’t know why. Sure, he’s pleasant on the eyes, but there are many handsome men who come in. There’s nothing special about him either. All he does is read and leave cheap tips.  
Still, Mindy is drawn to him.  
“You should go talk to him,” Sarah suggests.  
Mindy startles at the sound of her voice. She raises her eyebrow at her.  
“Oh, don’t give me that look,” Sarah says, “You know exactly what I’m talking about.” She adds some cream to the cup she’s making.  
Sarah is the kind of friend who’ll make sarcastic remarks about your life and rain on your parade, but give you good advice and have your back when you need her to. They’d worked together since senior year. They don’t have a whole lot in common. Mindy is studying to become a nurse and Sarah wants nothing more than to paint. Yet something had made them click. They binge-watch Netflix together, crash on each other’s couches, and often fall asleep in the storeroom, discussing types of coffee during break.  
“I couldn’t,” Mindy says, stirring milk and whipped cream into her own cup. “Besides, what would I even say to him?”  
“Hmm, let me think about that,” Sarah hums, smirking, “Don’t people usually begin a conversation with ‘hello, how are you’? Correct me if I’m wrong.”  
Mindy rolls her eyes. “I meant after that.”  
“Ooh, this one’s a toughie. Maybe introduce yourself? Ask if he likes the coffee? You know, stuff like that.”  
“Pretty sure he likes the coffee, you know, since he comes here everyday.”  
“Then ask him what he’s reading.”  
“No. No, I’m too shy.”  
Sarah shrugs, covering her cup with a lid and sliding a sleeve on it. “Whatever,” she says, “but you’re missing out on a cute piece of ass.” She winks at Mindy, then leaves the kitchen.  
Mindy glares after her, digging through a pile of coffee cup lids on the counter. She tried to keep them organized, but they always turned into a messy clutter when she wasn’t looking.  
“What’s this about a cute piece of ass?”  
Mindy just about spills the coffee when Holly plows into her. “Does our precious, little Mindy have her eyes on someone?”  
Mindy’s been friends with Holly longer than she’s been with Sarah. They grew up in the same neighbourhood. Mindy isn’t exactly sure how they’d become friends. Holly had wriggled her way into her life. Somehow.  
“Yes,” she sighs, pushing Holly out of her bubble, “but I’m not going in.”  
“What?!” Holly shrieks, and Mindy shushes her with a sharp hiss. She follows Mindy into the table area, demanding, “Why not?!”  
Mindy sighs again when customers start to stare at them. Holly always does or says something that gives people a reason to stare.  
Holly is in love with her boyfriend, and she is obsessed with the fact that Mindy and Sarah are single. She’s been setting them up with literally every random joe she finds on the street. While her intention is good, it usually just ends up annoying her best friends.  
It isn’t that Mindy doesn’t want to find love—quite the opposite, actually. She just wants it to be with the right person this time.  
“I don’t know anything about him,” Mindy says.  
“You can find all that stuff out on the dates! That’s what they’re for!” Holly argues.  
“I haven’t dated in three years.”  
“All the more reason to!”  
“Holly’s got a point,” says Sarah, walking over to them. “Plus, we know you want to.”  
“Since when do you two know me better than I do?” Mindy asks.  
They go back into the kitchen to refill the coffee pot.  
“Since always,” responds Sarah, pouring a pitcher of water into the coffee machine.  
“So, what’s he look like?” asks Holly.  
“Dark, thick hair—the kind that makes you wanna run your fingers through it. Uh, I think tall, and a very, very squeezable ass.”  
“Ooh, those are the best kind!”  
Mindy groans, dragging a hand down her face. “Are men’s asses all you think about?”  
“Other than their muscles? Yes.”  
Holly giggles, “You have to admit—it is their best feature.”  
“I hate you both.”  
“Uh huh, and after we convince you to go talk to this guy, you’ll be telling us how much you love us.”  
“I am not going to talk to him! This conversation is over.”  
“But—”  
“Over.”  
At that moment, the telephone begins to ring. Holly answers it. “Hello, Lukewarm’s Coffeehouse, how may I help you?” A disgusted scowl then twists Holly’s face. She puts her hand over the phone and turns to Mindy. “It’s Ryan,” she spits his name out, like it’s something gross on her tongue.  
Sarah groans loudly, and Mindy pinches the bridge of her nose.  
“Alright, that’s it!” Mindy shouts, untying her apron. “I am ending this once and for all.”  
Ryan is the manager of the ice cream shop across the street. He’s been trying to woo her for the past month, and Mindy is most definitely not interested. Sarah had dated him before and she’d said that he doesn’t take being told ‘no’ very well.  
“Really?” Holly asks, as she hands her her apron.  
“Yes,” Mindy says determinedly, much to her friends’ delight. “Tell him I’m coming over.”  
“You go, girl!” Sarah cheers.  
“Heartbreaker!” exclaims Holly.  
Mindy smiles back at them, then heads out of the kitchen. She grabs her coat from the coat rack and takes off her shoes, slipping into her winter boots. The door of the coffee shop opens with a ring of the bell above. Mindy steps outside, door closing behind her.  
And dread fills her the second the cold night air hits her.  
She suddenly remembers why she hadn’t confronted Ryan earlier. She hates confrontation. It was one of the reasons why her last relationship with her abusive boyfriend, Ted, had lasted so long.  
She looks back at the coffee shop, considering going back inside and forgetting about the thing with Ryan completely. But she knows he’ll only keep bothering her, and the longer she waits to put her foot down, the more trouble it’ll be when she has to say no.  
She sits on the bench and takes a deep breath. She survived the death of her parents, survived the crappy foster care system, and survived Ted landing her in the hospital more than once. She can handle this. She can.  
A snowflake lands on her nose. Mindy looks up. The sky is dark and grey, not a single star to be seen. But a little piece of the moon’s peeking out at the corner of the clouds.  
Mindy takes another deep breath, tasting the winter air on her tongue. It settles inside her lungs pleasantly. The air is always fresher in winter.  
Steeling her nerves, she stands up and crosses the street with as much bravery as she can muster inside her scared heart.

“Hey there! Want a sundae? On the house.”  
Mindy doesn’t have to search for Ryan. He’s waving at her behind the counter. It’s late, so there’s not a lot of customers. That’s good. The last thing Mindy needs is an audience.  
“No thank you,” she tells Ryan, as she approaches the counter. It’s similar to the one in the coffee shop, but not as big. And instead of croissants and muffins in the glass, there’s all sorts of frozen sweets.  
“You don’t want a free sundae? Thought you loved sundaes,” Ryan says, wiping the inside of an ice cream bowl with a dishcloth.  
Mindy sighs. There’s no easy way to do this. “Listen,” she begins, her heart twisting inside her gut, “I’m sorry. You’re a good guy. I’m just not interested.” She sighs again, shakily, keeping her eyes trained on her boots. “I’m really sorry, Ryan.” And she is. She remembers when she was in high school, she got turned down the first time she asked a boy out. She knows what rejection feels like. It doesn’t feel good.  
The sound of glass shattering startles Mindy. At first she thinks Ryan just dropped the bowl, but when she sees the angry snarl on his face, she realizes that he broke it on purpose. He opens his mouth and Mindy knows he screams something, but she doesn’t hear it because her ears are ringing.  
Ted used to break plates when he got mad.  
As soon as that thought enters her mind, she pushes it out and then runs out of the ice cream shop as fast as she can.

The second she’s back in the coffee shop’s kitchen, two pairs of arms wrap around and hold Mindy while she struggles to catch her breath. They rub her back, whisper soothing words in her ear, and tell her to try to match their breathing. After the longest five minutes ever, Mindy can finally breathe properly. She leans on Sarah’s side, as the world slowly comes back into focus and the sensation of sweat seeps into her. She’s still wearing her coat. She unzips it and shuffles out of the sleeves, thinking ‘yuck, I’m hot’. She realizes after that her eyes are stinging too. She must’ve been crying.  
“I’m gonna kill that guy.” The danger in Holly’s tone surprises Mindy. She would have expected it from Sarah, but not bubbly, sweet Holly.  
“I’ll hide the evidence,” Sarah jokes, making Mindy laugh. “But if you get caught, I’ve never seen you before in my life.”  
Holly gives her a look. “You’re so loyal.”  
Mindy laughs again and dries her eyes. “Just leave him alone. I don’t think he’ll bug us anymore.” At least she hopes so. There weren’t very many people around to see what happened, but rumours spread like fire. Ryan probably won’t be getting a lot of customers for awhile and Mindy is sure he’s not desperate enough to risk his business.  
“You sure?” Sarah asks, giving her shoulder a squeeze.  
Mindy nods, leaning into the embrace. “I’m sure.”  
“Why don’t you go home?” suggests Holly, hand warm on Mindy’s spine, “Your shift ends in twenty minutes anyways.”  
“You’ll be okay without me?”  
“No, we’ll die.”  
“Very funny. Go home, Mindy. We’ll be fine.”  
They help her to her feet. Mindy’s legs feel a bit like jello, but her friends hold her up until she can stand on her own.  
“Thanks,” she says gratefully and hugs both of them. She laughs when Sarah fakes an eye roll, but hugs her back just as tightly.  
After saying goodbye, Mindy puts her jacket back on and heads out.  
She stops when she suddenly sees someone on the bench. It’s the guy she’d had her eyes on earlier. The one who Sarah and Holly had been teasing her about.  
“Hey,” he says, waving. He’s holding a book and he slides a bookmark on the page he’s on, then closes it and sets it on his lap.  
Book Guy pops up in Mindy’s mind.  
Mindy blinks and looks around before realizing he’s talking to her. “Hi,” she says back shyly.  
“Um...” Book Guy rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “You okay? I saw you running.”  
He did? Mindy hadn’t noticed him.  
She huffs then, feeling irritation well up inside her and plops down beside the man. “Would you be okay after turning down someone as politely as possible, and then having them yell at you?” she asks.  
“Sorry to hear that,” Book Guy says. He sounds sincere.  
Mindy looks at him. He has the most gorgeous brown eyes she’s ever seen. She quickly looks away, wincing when she gets a whiff of her sweat. ‘Oh, you idiot’, she berates herself. Why had she sat down beside him? ‘Stupid, stupid.’  
“Thank you,” she croaks, eyes widening, and she clears her throat. “I... um...” She panics about what to say next, her brain blank. “I... hope... he won’t bother me anymore,” she mumbles. She berates herself again, ‘Lame’.  
“You mean Ryan, right? He’ll leave you alone now. He doesn’t like being rejected by the same girl twice.”  
Mindy frowns. “You know him?”  
Book Guy sighs and looks exasperatedly at the ice cream shop. “He’s my cousin.”  
“Oh,” Mindy says, surprised, “Damn, that must suck.” Then she gasps at herself. “I mean—sorry, I—”  
Book Guy laughs. “No, it does,” he replies with a smile, “Ryan’s got some serious anger issues. He’s the reason I hate family gatherings.”  
Mindy relaxes and smiles back. “Imagine having three brothers, who’re all just like that.”  
Book Guy half-groans, half-laughs. “I can’t and I don’t want to.”  
Mindy giggles, then sighs contentedly, her nerves no longer exploding inside her. She leans back and shivers when a cold gust of wind hits her, shoving her hands under her sleeves like a muff.  
“Here,” says Book Guy, giving her his gloves.  
“Thanks,” Mindy says with a grateful smile, slipping them on. They smell like coffee and bread, like him.  
She’s unsure of why she feels so comfortable with a stranger.  
“Why do you work here?” Book Guy then asks.  
Mindy shrugs. She wiggles her fingers in the gloves. They’re big and she likes the feeling. “I like coffee,” she says, “Besides, something’s gotta pay the bills. Why do you come here?”  
“I like coffee,” Book Guy answers with a grin, “and it’s a good place to read.”  
“You like reading?”  
“Yeah. I have a variety.”  
“The only reading I get the time to do is for university.”  
“Ooh, fun. School.”  
“Ooh, no. Not really.”  
The sound of the clock tower striking midnight reaches Mindy’s ears from afar.  
“It’s late. I should be heading home now.” She returns Book Guy’s gloves, shoving her hands in her pockets and standing up.  
“You don’t live too far from here, do you?” There’s a concerned look in Book Guy’s eyes.  
“No. Just around the corner,” Mindy tells him.  
“Alright,” he says, though the worried look remains in his eyes. “Be careful.”  
“You too.” Mindy smiles then. “Can I get a name before I go?”  
“Aidan. Aidan Kobayashi. And yours?”  
“Mindy Yamamoto.”  
Aidan smiles. “Well I’ll see you around, Mindy.”  
“See you, Aidan.”

Mindy flops onto her bed, getting comfy under the covers, and hugging the teddy bear she’s had since she was four to her chest.  
Her heart is doing something strange and her face is too warm for her liking, but she’s happy.  
She can’t wait to go to work tomorrow.

Mindy  
chapter 1, end


	2. Chapter 2

Mindy, Chapter 2  
When Mindy goes to work the next day, she sees Aidan on the bench in front of the coffee shop again. Her heart jumps in delight.  
“Good morning,” she says, grinning so big it hurts.  
Aidan looks up from his book and smiles back at her. “Morning,” he responds, standing up. “I was hoping to catch you before work. I want to talk to you.”  
Excitement spikes in Mindy and she’s about to ask what he wants to talk about.  
Then she sees Holly waving at her in the window and watches her jaw drop and eyes widen. Holly whips toward the kitchen and Mindy knows she’s calling Sarah. Then both of them are pressed up against the window.  
Mindy glares at them. They smirk.  
“Are you... busy today?” Aidan asks, a red tinge to his cheeks and it’s really, really cute.  
Mindy’s first thought to say no, but then she remembers her job and disappointment drags her heart down.  
“Sorry, I don’t get off until midnight.”  
“I’ll switch shifts with her!” Holly suddenly blurts, banging on the window and making Aidan jump.  
Mindy flashes her a look in between thankful and irritated.  
“I’m off at six then,” she tells Aidan.  
“Great! Or... I mean,” Aidan stammers, cheeks turning redder, “Would you... like to go out with me? Not, like on a date! Uh, I mean, maybe a date—”  
“I’d like that a lot,” Mindy says before he can ramble.  
“Good. I’ll pick you up at six then,” Aidan says.  
“I’ll see you then.”  
“Yeah.”  
Mindy heads for the door of the coffee shop and Aidan heads down the sidewalk. Mindy stops when she realizes something.  
“Wait, where are we going?” she calls.  
Aidan smiles at her over his shoulder. “It’s a surprise.”

The day passes by with cappuccinos and lattes, and Mindy can’t stop smiling no matter how much Holly and Sarah tease her. Excitement bubbles in her chest the closer it gets to evening and her mind keeps straying to Aidan. It’s really embarrassing; how happy she is.  
Sarah and Holly see her off when Aidan arrives exactly at six o’clock. Punctual. Mindy likes that.  
They walk downtown together in silence, but it isn’t awkward. Even though they just met yesterday, it feels like they’re old friends reconnecting with each other.  
“So, what do you do when you’re not reading?” Mindy asks.  
“For you information, I’m not as nerdy as I seem.” Aidan grins. “I’m an athlete.”  
“Really? What sport?”  
“Figure skating. Okay, maybe I am a nerd.”  
Mindy laughs, “I don’t know about that. Figure skating is pretty cool.”  
“What about you? Any sports?”  
“No, but I used to swim.” She enjoyed it and she was good at it too. But she had to quit after Ted messed up her arm. “Aside from my job at Luke’s, I work in the library and go to class.”  
“Wow, you sound like a busy person. What are you taking classes for?”  
“To become a nurse.”  
“Wow,” Aidan breathes, “That’s awesome.”  
Mindy tries not to blush under his gaze. “Thanks,” she says shyly.  
“What do you do in your free time? If you even get any.”  
“I do get some. I’m here, aren’t I?” Mindy says, and Aidan grins. “My hobbies are baking and... that’s about it.”  
Aidan snorts, “You’re so busy with work and stuff, I thought you’d have a lot of hobbies too.”  
“I’m not always busy!” Mindy exclaims, making Aidan laugh again. “What about you? Any hobbies?”  
“Well, yes, but they all revolve around skating. I practice, teach a class with my sister, babysit my nieces—we always go to the rink—and I do some stuff for my church’s rink.”  
“You have nieces? How old?”  
Aidan’s expression softens. “Amy’s four, Lilly’s three, and Polly is one.”  
“Aw, they’re babies!”  
“Don’t tell them that.”  
Mindy giggles. She asks about Aidan’s nieces the rest of the way to their destination. She likes how his face looks when he talks about them. Mindy feels like no time has passed at all when Aidan says, ‘we’re here’.  
Her jaw drops at their location.  
The local skating rink.  
“I can’t skate!” she cries.  
Aidan grins mischievously, as if he knew that all along. “Good thing you’re with a professional then,” he says. He takes her hand and guides her through the doors.

Mindy loses her balance and stumbles a hundred times. Meanwhile, Aidan watches her move clumsily in her skates, holding an arm out to grab her if she falls.  
“I can’t do this!” she shouts at him.  
He chuckles and Mindy wants to hit him.  
“It’s okay, you’re doing great.” He’s lying.  
Mindy wants to wipe that smug smirk off his stupid face.  
“This isn’t fair! You’re a freaking professional!” She grabs onto the railing.  
“Okay, what are you good at it?” Aidan asks.  
“Baking cupcakes.” Mindy makes the mistake of letting go of the railing, but before she can plummet to her demise, Aidan catches her.  
“We’ll do that next time then,” he says. He grasps her forearms and helps her steady herself.  
“There’s going to be a next time?” she asks, hanging onto his jacket for dear life.  
“Definitely.” Aidan smiles. “Maybe it can be a second date?”  
Mindy’s chest flutters and she grins. “Are you confirming that this is a first date?”  
She grins wider at the pink that dusts Aidan’s cheeks.  
Suddenly, he starts skating backwards, fingers wrapped around Mindy’s arms snugly. She stumbles into his chest, caught off guard.  
“Hey.” He bends down and looks her in the eye. “I’ve got you. Don’t be afraid.”  
“I feel bad that you have to deal with such a klutz,” she mutters.  
“At least you’re not screaming.”  
“I guess that’s a positive.”  
“Relax. I’ve been teaching people how to skate since I was a kid.”  
Mindy’s tempted to tease him, but instead she says, “That’s amazing.” She smiles at the colour Aidan’s face turns. She could do this all evening. “Hey, show me some of your moves,” she then says, and Aidan’s face turns even redder. “I mean it.” She wants to see how good he is.  
“Okay,” Aidan says. He helps her to the railing, then skates toward the centre of the ice.  
His body moves in impossible ways, an elegance that thousands can only dream of possessing. He’s graceful, beautiful, enchanting, and Mindy can’t take her eyes off him. She doesn’t blink because she doesn’t want to miss a single thing. She can see the outline of his muscles under his jacket, and she just about melts at the way his hair waves with his motion.  
Then the jumps and twirls starts, and Mindy makes a loud, thrilled sound. She thinks that, ‘this man is incredible!’  
When Aidan finishes, Mindy and others on the ice applaud him. He thanks everyone humbly, then skates back over to Mindy.  
“That was so awesome!” Her eyes are wide with wonder and her grin is so big, it hurts. The only thing better than watching Aidan skate, is how easily she can make his face turn red.  
“Thanks,” he says bashfully, wiping the sweat off his brow. He’s panting and his hair is a splendid, hot mess now.  
“I’m going to have to amp my cupcake game.”

They leave around ten. Aidan helps her untie her skates, and insists on walking her home.  
“You don’t have to. It’s really far.” After such a lovely time, she doesn’t want to trouble him. Besides, she can get home just fine by herself.  
Aidan shakes his head at her stubbornly. “My sister is a rape victim. I’m walking you home,” he says firmly.  
Mindy can’t say no after hearing this.  
“I’m sorry about your sister,” she says, while they walk down the street together in the dark.  
It’s snowing, but it’s a light snow. It feels soft.  
“She’s okay. It was over seven years ago,” Aidan replies, “She’s one of the strongest people I know.”  
Mindy can’t tell if his tone is sad or proud. Maybe it’s a little bit of both.  
“You must be close with her.”  
“She’s my best friend. What about you and your family?”  
Mindy sighs. She doesn’t particularly like talking about her family. “My birth parents died when I was little. I keep in touch with my foster mother, but I’m not in contact with my foster father or brothers.”  
She doesn’t miss them. The last time she saw them was three years ago. When she was still with Ted. Jared knew exactly what was going on. She showed Ricky, Alex and Austin the bruises. And they did nothing to help her.  
A near-death incident and three years later, she’s still bitter and doesn’t know if she’ll ever be able to forgive them.  
“Oh, sorry to hear that,” says Aidan.  
Mindy shakes her head. “We had a huge fight a long time ago. My mom was the only one who took my side.”  
Elena never tried to replace Mindy’s birth mother, but after years of effort and love, Mindy made room in her heart for two moms. Elena played dolls with her, taught her how to bake, took the time to help her with her homework, and gave her a hundred dollar bill and the keys to Jared’s car so she could get away from Ted.  
Aidan smiles at her. “You and your mom must be close.”  
“We are,” Mindy says, remembering how just last week she helped Elena with her garden in her backyard.  
“My sister and I don’t share blood, but she’s still my sister. It takes so much more than that to make a family,” Aidan says.  
Mindy thinks of her mom, and Sarah, and Holly. She nods in agreement.  
She asks more about Aidan’s nieces and he tells her stories until they reach Mindy’s apartment.  
“Have a good night. I’ll see you tomorrow,” says Aidan.  
Mindy steps up the concrete, then turns around with a smile. She’s taller than Aidan like this, so she doesn’t have to stand on her tiptoes when she kisses his cheek.  
Aidan blushes to the tips of his ears.  
After Mindy closes the door behind her, her own face is as red as a tomato.  
(Later, after she’s done being embarrassed, she decides that it was worth it for the look on Aidan’s face. He looks good with a blush).

Mindy  
chapter 2, end

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope this chapter was okay! I'm still in the middle of writing this, so I haven't gotten the chance to do much editing. I'm still on chapter 5. I should actually look at it again and spend some time thinking about what happens next. I'm going to do that! And hopefully, I'll think of something and won't just stare at my (really bright) computer screen for like an hour.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for the paragraphs :(

“What’d I tell you?”  
“Shut up.”  
“I told you, didn’t I?”  
“Shut up.”  
Sarah has been harassing Mindy all morning, and she’s almost done fighting the urge to dump the salt shaker over Sarah’s head.  
“I told you so,” Sarah sings, giggling, “I knew you and Aidan would hit it off. He’s totally your type.”  
Mindy groans. She and Aidan have been on six dates now. On top of that, they see each other everyday in Luke’s, and the library Mindy works at has suddenly become one of Aidan’s favourite spots.   
She glares at Sarah.  
Sarah grins, plopping a doughnut in a bag, and placing it and a cup of coffee on the counter for the customer to take. “I’m not going to stop until you acknowledge that I told you so because I did tell you so.”  
Mindy sighs, restocking the sweets shelf beneath the counter. “You were right, I was wrong. There. Happy?”  
“What was that? I didn’t quite catch that.”  
“I will hurt you.”  
“You’ve said that a hundred times.”  
“Don’t push your luck.”  
Holly laughs, wiping off a dirty table. “Don’t take all the glory. I told her too, you know.”  
“Don’t you start on me. I can’t handle you guys tag-teaming me.”  
Sarah and Holly laugh.   
Mindy stares at the salt shaker. Sarah is standing right beside her, it’d be so easy to pour it all over her head. And if she ran, she could probably get Holly with the pepper.  
“But seriously,” Holly then says, “I’m so happy that you’re happy. You deserve it.”  
Mindy feels a grateful smile tugging her lips. But she’s still debating going after them with the shakers.  
Sarah clears her throat loudly, “Yeah.” She feigns embarrassment. “What Holly said.” Then a grin breaks across her face. “You deserve to be happy. You always have.”  
Mindy smiles, gestures for Holly to come over, then pulls her friends into a hug. These two are the bane of her existence. She doesn’t know who she’d be without them.  
“Thank you. I love you, guys.”  
“Love you too.”  
“I refuse to partake in this fluffy-marshmallow-sap, but I love you too.”  
Yup. These two complete her.

“Seess are goomm,” Aidan says around a mouthful of cupcake and icing.  
Mindy chuckles. Aidan is a perfectionist, like her, but he can be messy without realizing it.  
“You should take some with you for your nieces.”  
“Weally?”  
Mindy nods, hiding her smile behind her hand. Honestly, Aidan is too adorable for his own good.  
“Sanks.”  
They’re sitting at the kitchen table in Mindy’s apartment, eating the cupcakes they’d baked together. Mindy has become comfortable enough with Aidan that she’s debating whether or not to tell him about Ted. She knows he won’t judge or leave her, but she’s not sure if it’s too soon, or even if she’s ready to tell him.   
Aidan finishes his cupcake, licking icing off of his lips and fingers. “Hey, you want to watch My Little Pony?”  
Mindy bursts into laughter. “That was so random!”  
“I’m serious!”  
“Why?”  
“Because I watched it last weekend with my nieces, and I want to find out what happens in the next episode. They always skip ahead without me, and never fill me in on what’s going on.”  
Mindy laughs harder, and she can tell that was Aidan’s intention by the grin on his face.  
“Really, I’m serious.”  
She’ll tell him about Ted when the time is right. She doesn’t know when that time will be, or even if it’ll ever come, but maybe it doesn’t matter. It’s not like she needs Aidan to save her or anything. She’s already been saved by her best friends, her mother, and herself.  
Her past doesn’t define her. And there are also two things that she knows:

1\. Aidan is a good person, who she is falling for rapidly, and she can tell that he’s falling in love with her too.

2\. They’re headed for something beautiful that Mindy feels she is deserving of.

Mindy, Chapter 3 End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end of Mindy's story! Hope you liked :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Sarah's story begins!

Sarah  
Chapter 1  
Sarah is an independent woman. She doesn’t dream about marshmallow stuff like getting married, or having kids. She likes being on her own. Getting married would mean she’d have to share her life with someone else, and she doesn’t like the sound of that. Besides, marriage doesn’t guarantee ‘forever’.   
But sometimes, when she sees the way Mindy’s eyes light up at the mention of Aidan, or how wide Holly grins when Joey drops by Luke’s, Sarah feels a pang in her heart. She’s happy that her best friends have found love, but...  
She wants it too.  
Sarah always shakes the thought away. Lately though, she hasn’t been able to get it out of her head. No matter how many times she tells herself that she wants to live a free life, she can’t stop thinking about how nice it would be to wake up in the arms of a good, loving man.   
It’s been showing up in her paintings too. She finds herself painting more and more with the colours of romance.  
She hates this. It’s like she’s drowning in marshmallow fluff.  
“Why do you not date for real if you feel that way?” Hana, an acquaintance in her art class, asks.  
Hana is an Asian immigrant, who came to Canada, searching for adventure. She’s a talented artist, but she’s hoping to become a famous poet. She cleans the local bank, a job that doesn’t require her to speak English much. She gets paid minimum wage and lives in a crappy apartment, just like Sarah. However, their personalities couldn’t be more different; Sarah is sarcastic, dry, and a little (okay, a lot) cynical, and Hana is a hopeful, bright optimist. They get along quite well though, and Sarah likes her.  
“But scaring guys away is so fun. Men get freaked out so easily,” Sarah pouts, mixing her red with her blue, so she doesn’t end up with a marshmallow painting again. “Last week, I went out with this chef, or lawyer, or whatever, and I scared him away by saying I had six kids.”  
Hana giggles. “At least that is not as bad as what you did the time before.”  
The time before, she’d scared off a guy by pretending she was drunk. (She even sang a slurred version of Every Breath You Take very loudly in the fancy restaurant they’d gone to.  
She, Mindy and Holly laughed so hard when she told them about it the next day).  
“I gave them names and everything. I even cried telling him all about the jerk who left us.”  
“Why is that fun for you?”  
“I like making people uncomfortable.”  
“You are so...so...um...what is the English word I’m looking for?”  
“Weird?”  
“Yes.”  
“I know. Thanks.”  
Sarah is sure this is just a temporary feeling. Even when she was little, she never wanted to walk down the isle, wearing a white dress. She likes being single—being free. Life is so much more fun when you’re just living for yourself. Sarah knows this feeling will pass.  
(At least, that’s what she tells herself).

Then the Ice Cap Man comes along. Sarah thinks nothing of him the first few times he comes into Luke’s—barely even spares him a glance. When he becomes a regular though, and orders an ice cap every cold, snowy evening, he gains her attention. She snickers about him with Mindy and Holly in the backroom.   
Then one day, he leaves a folded piece of paper along with his tip on his table.  
“I think it’s for you.” Holly says.   
She has that grin. The grin that spells trouble.  
Mindy comes to look at the paper over her shoulder, as Sarah unfolds it.

To the redheaded girl: you must be an angel because you’ve seem to have flown away with my heart.

At the same time Mindy bursts into laughter, Holly does too.  
Sarah groans in disgust, “What a cheese. Why would you give me this?”  
Holly inhales sharply, trying to calm down, but more and more gales of high-pitched laughter pours out of her.  
“Probably to see your reaction,” Mindy supplies, still giggling herself, and Holly nods eagerly.  
Sarah mockingly puts a hand over her heart. “Why Holly, I am hurt.”  
Holly just laughs harder.  
“I am positively insulted. I thought we were friends.”  
“Stop!” shrieks Holly, falling back against a table, “I can’t breathe!!!”  
Sarah rolls her eyes. “Okay seriously, this is not that funny.”  
“It is a little,” says Mindy.  
Sarah gives her a curious look, while she balls up the paper in her hands and throws it in the trash. “Why?”  
“Because you’re glowing.”  
Sarah freezes. “I am not.”  
“Yes, you are.”  
“I am not.”  
“Yes, you—”   
“Quit making me laugh!!!” blurts Holly, flopping onto her side on the floor.  
“Oh my—I can’t deal with you guys!” Sarah exclaims, yanking on her coat sleeves and shoving her feet into her winter boots, the fuzz itching her shins. “You aren’t my friends anymore! Hana has been upgraded to my favourite!” She grabs the handle of the door.  
“Wait! Don’t you want the tip?” calls Mindy.  
“Nah. Split it,” Sarah answers, then leaves.

Hana laughs when Sarah tells her about the Ice Cap Man, and his cheesy note, and her dumb friends (one of which can laugh like a hyena). They’re in Hana’s apartment, sitting at Hana’s Japanese table. She’s been sitting on her knees for an hour now, and Sarah can’t understand how her legs don’t get tired.   
“So, what will you do? Will you reply?” Hana asks.  
While Sarah has her sketchpad in front of her, Hana has been writing in the notebook her poetry is in. She’s let Sarah look through it before—her Japanese writing is very pretty, and the few poems that are in English are beautiful.  
Sarah thinks before she answers. “I guess.” A malicious grin spreads across her cheeks. “It could be fun.”  
Hana shakes her head at her, but the amused upturn of her lips makes it ineffective. “I do not understand you. At all.”  
Sarah chuckles, “If you don’t convert to the dark side, you never will.”  
“You are so...um...what is the word again?”  
“Weird.”

The next day, Ice Cap Man comes again in the evening and orders his usual, despite the vicious snow outside. Sarah hands him his coffee and his receipt, which she folded around her response.

To the man who orders ice caps in winter: flattery will get you nowhere without a tip.

No, she doesn’t care that he did leave a tip.  
And that’s how the Note Game begins.


	5. Chapter 5

Sarah, Chapter 2

After that, the Ice Cap Man always leaves a note beside his tip on the table.

Ah, a bit of a spitfire, are you? I like that in a woman.

And just for the fun of it, Sarah slips a note of her own in his receipt.

Ah, a bit of a moronic sap, are you? That’s adorable in boys.

It goes on for days.

Are you calling me adorable?

Grow up.

She doesn’t tell Mindy or Holly, knowing that they’ll just use this to get back at her for all the times she’s teased them.  
She tells Hana though, who laughs at Ice Cap Man’s notes. Sometimes, she scolds Sarah about how cold her responses are. Sometimes, she agrees that Ice Cap Man is too cheesy.

Would it hurt you to sit down and talk with me?

Yes.

Despite herself, Sarah finds that she looks forward to what Ice Cap Man will say next. She tries not to, knowing that he could stop answering her sass anytime he wants.   
She hopes he doesn’t. It’s stupid, but she hopes he doesn’t stop. She hopes he keeps writing her notes and grinning at her from across the room. His smile is as bright as the sun. Sarah can’t help but smile back.  
Despite herself, Sarah lets go of the helm and gets swept up in the game.

Roses are red, violets are blue, I’m no Shakespearean, but I like you.

Roses are red, violets are blue, get over yourself, before I hit you.

And then, feelings slowly begin to get involved. Sarah feels a jolt of electricity in her hand when their fingers brush, as he takes his receipt. She watches him unfold her note with baited breath. And when he grins up at her, and he always does, her chest flutters a little bit.   
That smile of his is just radiant. He’s like a pure ray of light in leather. The contrast is attractive, to say the least. Enticing, really.   
When he leaves, Sarah makes a beeline for his table, pocketing his note before Mindy and Holly can see it.

If you were a chocolate bar, you’d be my favourite.

If you were a chocolate bar, you’d give me an allergic reaction.

She walks by his table as often as possible, wanting to see that smile again and again. He gives it to her every time, big and pearly, blue eyes sparkling. It’s too much and never enough at the same time, and Sarah thinks she’s starting to get addicted.

My redheaded Cinderella, would you do me the honour of having dinner with me?

Cinderella, huh? You must have a foot fetish.

Is that a yes?

One time, Sarah sees Ice Cap Man writing, reading glasses perched on his nose. He’s all serious and focused, and it’s kind of cute. His ice cap and food sit beside him untouched. He hasn’t put his pen down in hours, and Sarah’s curious.  
She scribbles on a piece of paper from her notepad, balls it up and tosses it at him. It bounces off his head, then lands on the table. He startles and looks up, his gaze finding hers. He gives her a playful grin, then unfolds the paper and reads it.

What are you doing?

Ice Cap Man then writes on the other side of the paper, balls it up again, and throws it back to her. Sarah leans over the counter to catch it, then unfolds it.

Paperwork. My dad is in the hospital.

Sarah feels a wave of empathy wash over her for Ice Cap Man. She looks at him, then looks at the clock. It’s almost time for her break. If Mindy or Holly catches her doing this, they would tease her relentlessly—mention it everyday to embarrass her and then laugh when her face turns the same colour as her hair. Is it worth it?  
Sarah decides that it is.  
She takes off her apron and puts it on the counter. Then she goes and sits down in front of Ice Cap Man. He jumps in surprise and looks at her, blinking. Then he grins, eyes sparkling, and Sarah’s heart just might feel fuzzy.  
“Finally decided to really talk to me, eh?” he asks. He has a bit of an accent.  
Sarah crosses her arms. “Shut up.”  
“I knew you loved me.”  
“I don’t.”  
“And yet here you are, Cinderella.”  
Sarah arches an eyebrow. “Is that your nickname for me?” she asks.  
Ice Cap Man smiles. “Well, what’s your real name?” he asks back.  
Sarah sighs, but she’s smiling and her cheeks feel a little warm. “Sarah,” she replies, “And what’s your real name?”  
“I should make you guess.”  
“Ice Cap Man.”  
Ice Cap Man frowns. “That’s what you’ve been calling me?”  
Sarah gestures at his ice cap.   
He shrugs. “Fair enough.” Then he extends his hand. “I’m Nate.”  
Sarah shakes his hand, trying not to dwell on how perfectly their fingers fit together. “So,” she clears her throat, tapping her nail on the table, “your dad is in the hospital?”  
Nate sags, like the weight of the world is dragging him down. “Yes. He’s very sick, and they... they’re not sure if he’ll make it,” he mumbles, the usual sparkle in his eyes dulling sadly.  
Sarah doesn’t even think. She reaches over and puts her hand on Nate’s arm. “I’m sorry,” she says.  
Nate looks at her hand and smiles softly, slipping his fingers between hers. Then he smirks playfully. “You came to comfort me? How sweet,” he teases.  
“Oh my gosh. You’re the worst,” Sarah says, but she doesn’t take her hand away.  
“C’mon, tell me about yourself,” Nate says, holding her hand a little tighter. “What’s your family like?”  
Sarah sighs. “Fine,” she groans, rolling her eyes. Although she feels herself smiling. “My sister and I were raised by our aunts. It’s kind of a long story, but a few years back we all sorta broke ties. I think of my friends as my family,” she says. Nate is listening to her closely, an empathetic look on his face. Sarah doesn’t usually talk about her family to avoid being pitied. Most think it is a sad one. It really isn’t. Not for Sarah. They used to fight all the time, but now that none of them talk, there’s no fighting. “Now you. Tell me about your family,” says Sarah, nudging Nate’s ankle with her foot.  
Nate nudges her back. “Well, I have an older brother. He’s a missionary, so he travels a lot. He’s in a different country right now, leaving me to deal with hospital stuff.” Nate sighs at this.  
Sarah hesitates at first. Then she asks, “Does he check in with you?”  
“Oh yeah, all the time.” Nate smiles, chuckling a little. “He’s a worrier. Sometimes he calls me four times throughout the day. He wishes he could be here to help me.”  
Sarah smiles. “Sounds like a good brother.”  
“Yeah, he is. Do not tell him I said that. Ugh, his head would swell.”  
Sarah laughs. “So is it just you, your brother and your dad?” she asks.  
“Well, I have two sisters. One disowned us. And the other, well, doesn’t visit a whole lot. Me and her are on good terms, but she and my brother don’t get along. They have different beliefs,” Nate responds.  
“Oh,” Sarah says. She could understand that. Part of the reason she and her sister fought so much, was because they didn’t share the same views. It was kind of... Sarah’s fault. She was always looking for a fight.  
“So, you’re a waitress” Nate then asks.  
“Yup,” Sarah replies, “It pays the bills. There’s nothing I really wanna do anyway.”  
“Really? Are you sure?”  
“I do like to paint, but that’s just a hobby.”  
“You’ll have to show me sometime.”  
Sarah’s heart skips a beat. She clears her throat. “Um, so what do you do?”  
“Write. I want to be a writer,” Nate says with a grin.  
“Really? What do you write about?” Sarah asks.  
Nate’s grin turns soft and he gives her hand a tiny squeeze. “Love.”  
Everything feels light and rosy, and Sarah finds that she can’t look away from Nate’s eyes.  
That is, until someone yells her name.  
“Sarah! I need your help, Holly got her hair stuck in the coffee machine again!” exclaims Mindy, bursting out of the kitchen door. She stops abruptly when she sees where Sarah is.  
Sarah can finally look away from Nate’s eyes. She stares, frozen by panic, at Mindy. Her friend’s gaze falls on her hand in Nate’s, their fingers still entwined. Sarah quickly pulls her hand back to her, but it’s too late.   
When Mindy smiles at her, Sarah loathes herself.  
She sighs and turns back to Nate. “I gotta go. Duty calls.” Actually, stupid Holly and her dumb antics call.   
Nate nods in understanding.  
Sarah feels Mindy’s smile widen. She sighs again, even heavier this time, and stands up.  
“Talk to you later, Cinderella,” says Nate.  
“Don’t count on it, Ice Cap Man,” she says back, throwing Nate a backwards wave, and then walks up to Mindy.  
She glares at her. Mindy keeps on smiling.  
“Don’t you dare say anything to Holly.”  
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”  
“I hate you.”

Hana squeals and claps with delight when Sarah tells her about her conversation with Nate. They’re in Hana’s apartment again, sitting at her low table. Hana is, at least. Sarah is laying on her stomach under the table, trying to smother herself with a pillow.  
“I’ve become a marshmallow,” Sarah complains. She can’t stop imagining Nate’s eyes and stupid, gorgeous smile. It’s awful. She stuffs her face further in the pillow, trying to cut off her oxygen supply.  
“How sad for you,” giggles Hana, sticking a leg under the tablecloth and poking Sarah with her foot.  
All Sarah accomplishes by smushing her face is a pillow imprint of her head. She scoots backwards until she’s out from under the table, then rolls onto her back, hugging the cushion to her chest, and stares at the ceiling.  
“I promised myself I’d never like anyone,” she says.  
Hana crawls over to her and lays on her back beside her. “Why did you promise yourself that?” she asks.  
Sarah sighs and doesn’t look at Hana. “My aunts hated each other. I guess... I always thought that if I liked someone, I’d end up hating him,” she explains, cheeks warming in embarrassment. She despises opening up about her feelings.  
Hana turns onto her side, reaching for Sarah’s hand. She holds it between them, her fingers around Sarah’s palm. The way Hana holds her hand and the way Nate held her hand are different. Hana’s hand is warm and soft. Nate’s hand, with his fingers slipped through hers, made her feel electric.  
“Look at me,” Hana says.  
Sarah does. Hana’s eyes are serious, yet gentle.  
“You will not make the mistakes of others. You are your own person. You can have love, but only if you do not cower from it,” she tells her, giving her hand a little squeeze.  
Sarah swallows, forcing herself to keep looking Hana in the eye. “What if... he breaks my heart?” she asks oh so quietly, fear shaking her voice.  
“Then I will break him,” Hana replies simply.  
Sarah laughs at that. Then she squeezes Hana’s hand back. “Thanks,” she murmurs.  
“Anything for you,” Hana says with a smile. “So? What will you do?”  
Butterflies flutter in Sarah’s gut. “Keep playing the Note Game,” she responds, her heart warm.  
“Welcome to the side of light, marshmallow.”  
“Shut up!”

The next day, Sarah slips another note into Nate’s recipe as she gives him his ice cap.

Did it hurt when you fell from heaven? You must’ve landed on your face.

Nate leaves his response on his table, and Sarah shows Mindy what it says in the backroom. She has to. It’s the only way to keep Mindy from telling Holly.

I could get lost in the ocean of your eyes.

Life goes on like this.

My eyes are green.

There’s seaweed in the ocean.

So I’m seaweed?

“You’re so cute,” Mindy says harmoniously, while they sit in the storeroom, drinking coffee and talking about Nate.  
“I’m not cute,” Sarah tells her sternly, putting her pen down to give Mindy a look. She’s writing her next message to Nate in her notepad.  
“You kind of are,” Mindy says, smiling.  
Sarah groans. Mindy giggles at her.  
The backroom door opening suddenly startles Sarah.  
“What are you guys doing in there?” calls Holly, coming to join them with a cup of coffee.  
“Nothing!” Sarah exclaims, quickly hiding her notepad in her apron pocket.  
Mindy chuckles behind her hand.  
Holly grins at them. “You’re weird.”

The Note Game goes on for months.

You are the most splendid rose I’ve ever seen.

Nate never stops being cheesy. Sarah expects nothing else from a romance writer. She, however, is not, so she never stops being sassy.

You are the grass stain on the bottom of my sock.

And you said I had a foot fetish.

You’re a brat.

I have keep up with you. You set the bar pretty high, you know?

You better tip me for that.

Sarah sticks her tongue out at Nate, while she wipes off the table across from his. He just grins at her.

Do you like dogs?

Yes. Why? Please don’t tell me you were crazy enough to buy me one.

Not until after the first date, hun. I have a dog at my house. His name’s Snoopy. If you have dinner with me, you could meet him.

You’re not getting into my pants through your pet.

The thought never crossed my mind. Did it cross yours?

You’re insufferable.

You love me.

Then one evening, Nate doesn’t come into Luke’s. Sarah tries not to be disappointed. She had such a good comeback to his last message ready.  
He doesn’t come in the next evening either. Sarah tries to ignore his absence. He’s probably just busy. Or maybe his wallet is finally suffering from buying too many ice caps.  
The third evening he’s not there, Sarah starts to worry, her heart twisting in painful knots.


	6. Chapter 6

It’s almost closing time and Sarah’s sitting at Nate’s table, her head cushioned in her arms. Her shift was over hours ago, but she has nowhere to be and a sad, blue heart. She hasn’t seen Nate in days. It makes her ache in a strange, unfamiliar way. She hates it.  
Mindy sets a cup of coffee beside her, smiling empathetically. “You look like you need one,” she says.  
Sarah sighs. She appreciates her friend’s gesture, but she just doesn’t feel like talking. She doesn’t feel like doing anything. She’s never felt like this before.  
Mindy sits down on her right, rubbing a hand up and down her back soothingly. “It’s okay. He’s probably just busy,” she murmurs, ever the comforter.  
Sarah nods slowly. She knows that’s the logical case, but she can’t shake this sick feeling in her gut. She sighs sadly again.  
“What’s eating her up?” asks Holly, walking into the room while untying her apron.  
Mindy looks at Sarah. “Can I tell her?”  
Sarah shrugs. She doesn’t particularly care anymore.  
“Sarah’s got a guy,” Mindy says.  
Holly squeals excitedly, hanging up her apron behind the counter. “Really? That’s great!” she exclaims.  
“Except he hasn’t been around for awhile,” says Mindy.  
Holly’s grin falls. She eyes Sarah’s slumped form. “Oh,” she says softly.  
She comes and sits down on Sarah’s left, and starts caressing her hair. “There, there. It’s okay.”  
Sarah hums tiredly in response. She does, however, feel a little better with Mindy rubbing her back and Holly’s fingers in her hair. She would never admit it out loud, but she likes it when Holly touches her hair. Holly might already know that though. Sometimes it’s hard to tell, but Sarah isn’t about to ask her.  
“Cards at my place?” Holly suggests.  
“Sounds good,” Mindy agrees.  
Sarah nods her head. That sounds nice. Holly’s home is much warmer than hers too.  
“Okay. Wanna sleep over?”  
“Can’t. Helping Aidan move more of his stuff over.”  
“How about you, Sarah?”  
Sarah finally sits up. She nods at Holly.

It’s almost been a week. Nearly a whole week and Nate still hasn’t come to Luke’s. Sarah swears she’s going to go crazy soon.  
She tells Hana this, laying on the couch with her head on Hana’s lap. Her sketchpad is on the floor by her feet. Hana is writing a new poem in her notebook on the armrest.  
“I am sure you will not go crazy,” she says amusedly.  
Sarah whines, “I already am.”  
Hana looks down at her. “You have a pout.”  
Sarah crosses her arms, offended. “I do not,” she pouts.  
Hana chuckles quietly behind her hand. “Whatever you say.”  
Sarah sighs. “What if...” she purses her lips in a nervous line, fiddling with the end of her shirt.  
Hana puts her pencil down and looks at her again. “What?” she presses gently.  
A tight, twisted feeling burns in Sarah’s chest. It’s a struggle to get out the words. “What if... he got tired of me?” she asks meekly.  
“Oh, my friend,” says Hana, smiling, “Nobody could get tired of you.”  
Sarah’s chest feels a little lighter, but a tad of doubt still clings to her heart. “Really?” she asks, trying not to sound too vulnerable.  
Hana nods, her smile genuine. “Really.”  
Sarah feels better.

A week later, Nate comes into Luke’s again. It’s late and it’s been a busy day, but as soon as she catches a glimpse of his blond hair, Sarah gets a surge of adrenaline. Wide awake, she stands up straight.  
“Usual?” she asks when he comes up to the counter.  
He shakes his head. Up close, she can get a good look at him. His normally vibrant eyes are dark and drear, his jacket is wrinkled, and he looks as if a smile hasn’t graced his face for years. He looks completely drained.  
“Hot chocolate,” he responds, sounding like sleep has become a foreign thing to him.  
When Sarah heads into the kitchen to make Nate his hot chocolate, she finds Holly out like a light at the staff table. Mindy was meeting Aidan’s sister tonight, so she’d asked Holly if she could switch shifts with her.   
Sarah tries to be as quiet as she can. Luckily, Holly’s had a lot of practice falling asleep to the sounds of the coffeehouse.  
Nate is sitting at his table, gazing blankly at the wall, his shoulders tense with stress. He doesn’t even notice Sarah’s set his hot chocolate in front of him and sat beside him, until she touches his shoulder.  
“Oh, thanks,” he mutters, picking up the mug. He takes a sip, then puts it back down with a sigh. He stares at the steam wafting from his cup, eyes glassy.  
Sarah taps his arm. She slips her hand in his when he turns to her. “What’s wrong?” she asks, intertwining their fingers.  
Nate’s expression pinches painfully and he sucks in a sharp breath. “My dad passed,” he squeaks, blinking rapidly.  
“C’mere,” Sarah whispers, drawing Nate into her arms and holding him. He cries in her embrace, trembling with grief. It’s a little hard to hold someone bigger than you, but Sarah doesn’t care. She rubs comforting circles on Nate’s back with her thumb, humming softly beside his ear.  
Nate’s tears slowly die down, turning into small sniffs and then nothing. Exhaling shakily, he lays his forehead against Sarah’s shoulder.  
“I missed you,” he murmurs, wrapping his arms around her waist.  
Sarah rubs her thumb over his nape. “I missed you too.”  
They stay like that for a long time and Sarah hums a gentle tune again. She thinks Nate falls asleep against her a few times.  
Eventually, she checks her watch. It’s passed closing time. She has to turn off the open sign and wake up Holly, but she doesn’t want to leave Nate alone like this. The poor guy’s probably much too tired to drive himself home. They can stay here for a little bit longer.   
“Hey,” Sarah says in a low voice.  
“What?” Nate asks, yawning into his hand.  
“When you’re ready...” Sarah presses her cheek to Nate’s head. Her face helplessly warms, a shy pink tinting her nose. “I’ll go on a date with you. If you want,” she mumbles, nibbling her bottom lip.  
She feels Nate smile into her shoulder. “Yeah. I’d like that,” he replies.  
Sarah’s heart flutters.  
Then Nate chuckles. “You do like me.”  
Sarah rolls her eyes, dropping a kiss to his hair. “Oh, shut up.”

3 months later

“You were right! The coffee really is good,” says Hana, sipping her mocha carefully.  
Sarah rests her elbow on the counter, smirking at her friend. “I told you so,” she boasts.  
Hana likes her tea. It had took quite a bit of convincing to get her to try Luke’s coffee. It’s a good thing Sarah is persistent and that Hana gives in so easily. They’re sitting together in the kitchen at the staff table. Mindy scolded her for bringing a customer into the kitchen--’it’s dirty!’ is what she said, but Sarah thinks it’s cleaner than her own kitchen. In the end, Mindy simply sighed and wiped off the table for them.  
Hana rolls her eyes. “You get off on saying that, do you not?”  
Sarah gapes. “Where did you learn that?!”  
“You say it all the time.”  
“But do you know what it means?!”  
Hana smirks mischievously. “I looked it up.”  
Sarah isn’t sure if she should be proud or concerned that her humour is rubbing off on friend. Her expression must look pretty funny because Hana bursts out giggling at her.  
“Oh, Sarah!” calls a melodious voice.  
Sarah turns around. Holly’s standing there, smiling. Oh no, it’s that smile.  
“Your lover-boy’s here,” she sings.  
Mindy giggles, as she fills up the coffee machine again.  
Sarah groans, rolling her head back until she’s groaning up at the ceiling. “Are you guys ever going to stop calling him that?” she asks, scowling at Holly, her nape against the lean of her chair.  
“Nope,” replies Mindy, moving to the oven to check on the muffins she put in earlier. Her swift response makes Hana laugh.  
“It’s what he is!” says Holly, chuckling too.  
Sarah frowns thoughtfully. “Not technically,” she says, “We’re not lovers until we’ve had sex.”  
“What? You haven’t had sex yet!”  
“Holly! You’re a Christian!”  
“So? I can still have fun.”  
“You’re a bad girl.”  
“Only in bed.”  
“Wait,” Mindy interrupts suddenly, “So if you have to have sex to be lovers, what does that make me and Aidan?”  
“You mean you two haven’t had sex yet?” Holly asks.  
“But you live together,” Sarah says, surprised. This is backwards. She wouldn’t have been surprised at all if Mindy and Aidan were the ones getting it on, and Holly and Joey were abstinent. Then again, Holly is always full of surprises and even dear, predictable Mindy has a surprise up her sleeve once in awhile.  
“Well yes, but Aidan is Christian. We even sleep in different rooms,” Mindy says.  
Holly taps her thumb to her mouth, thinking. ”I guess... you’re just boyfriend and girlfriend then.”  
“But when they live together, are they not more than that?” asks Hana.  
Holly frowns and nods. “You’re right.”  
“What are we then?” Mindy wonders.  
All three of them hum thoughtfully.  
Sarah shakes her head. “You’re all idiots.” She stands up and leaves them all in the kitchen, trying to figure out whatever that is supposed to be.  
When she goes into the table area, she sees Nate standing at the counter. He gives her a grin that makes Sarah feel butterflies.  
He holds out a neatly folded piece of paper for her.  
Sarah arches an eyebrow. “What’s this?” she asks. They haven’t played the Note Game in months.  
Nate’s grin grows wider, his eyes sparkling. “Just read it,” he says.  
Sarah takes the paper and unfolds it.

Will you marry me?

Sarah’s breath stills, her heartbeat stuttering inside her chest. She can’t speak for an entire minute.  
“Well?” Nate eventually asks, smiling hopefully.  
Sarah looks up at him. Then her lips curl into a smirk. She flips the paper over to its blank side and pulls her pen out of her pocket. After she smooths the note on the counter, she starts writing. Nate tries to look, but she doesn’t let him.  
When she’s done, she hands it to Nate.  
He studies her a moment. Sarah really does try to keep a poker face, but she can feel herself starting to smile.  
Nate grins at her, as bright as the sun. Sarah’s tempted to shout at him ‘just read it already!’, but then he looks down at the paper.  
When he looks up, his heart is shining in his eyes.

Of course I will, ya dummy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this concludes Sarah's story! Hope you liked it and if you could, would you mind telling me if you think Sarah's 3rd chapter is too long? I'd appreciate it.  
> Last but not least, Holly!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm fairly certain there's going to be 9 chapters, but it might change. Also I have four chapters fully-written and complete. I'm in the middle of writing the fifth chapter. 
> 
> Sorry about the paragraph styling :(
> 
> Thank you for reading.


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